LANSING – Pure Michigan. The sweeping lake vistas. The woods afire with autumnal splendor. The powdery snow covering a tranquil field. And over each image, the resonant voice of Tim Allen.
And behind these ads, the state of Michigan has spent $67 million since 2006 in a bid to draw more tourists ? and their dollars ? to the Great Lakes State.
Tourism officials and industry analysts say the campaign is paying big dividends for Michigan: 2 million visitors who wouldn?t otherwise have visited, spending $605 million. And between 2009 and 2010, the tourism industry grew by $2 billion, enough to generate an additional 10,000 jobs for Michigan, they say.
By contrast, this summer, the state of Washington closed its tourism office, the victim of budget cutting that saw its finances drawn down from $10 million to $7 million to $1.8 million to nothing, reported the New York Times.
For the 2009-10 budget year, Michigan spent about $19 million promoting tourism. In 2010, visitors (tourists and business travelers) had direct spending of $17.2 billion, up $2 billion from the year before, though $1.5 billion less than the total from 2006.
An annual survey of state tourism office budgets for 2009-10 placed Michigan sixth on spending, with the $19 million. For 2010-11, Michigan slipped to No. 7, even with a total budget of $27.4 million.
To read the rest of the story, click on BridgeMI.Com
By Mike Brennan/Bridge Magazine contributor
a>>
